Halifax, April 26, 2022 – Colleges and institutes Canada, today, announced the recipients of its 2022 Awards of Excellence. The CICan Awards of Excellence recognize best practices from institutions across the country, as well as individual leadership and achievements. This year’s recipients include 23 institutions across seven provinces and territories, 11 individuals, and one faculty team.
The awards are distributed annually in partnership with TD Insurance, the exclusive sponsor of CICan’s Awards of Excellence. Recipients were recognized at a lunch reception in Halifax, during the association’s annual Connection Conference.
The awards are presented in ten categories at gold-, silver-, and bronze-levels. This year, recipients were recognized in two new categories: Excellence in Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion and Excellence in Global Engagement.
“Colleges and institutes across the country are full of exceptional leaders,” said Denise Amyot, president and CEO of CICan. “The fact that we have created three new categories in the last two years is a testament to their continued, and growing, impact within their institutions, in their communities, and at the national level.”
Congratulations to this year’s awards recipients:
(View photos of all recipients).
The Applied Research and Innovation Excellence Award
Gold: Lambton College
Lambton College’s Research & Innovation department is committed to leading innovation in its community, region and throughout Canada. It is because of this dedication that the department has ranked among the top three research colleges in Canada since 2016. Through the work of Research & Innovation, Lambton College has become a major driver of economic diversification and development within Southwestern Ontario, leading the development of several industrial clusters and supporting the commercialization of new products, services, and process developments for SMEs. Lambton College’s Research & Innovation department is also a propelling force behind social and environmental innovation.
Silver: Saskatchewan Polytechnic
Bronze: Mohawk College
The Indigenous Education Excellence Award
Gold: Georgian College
Indigenous Studies & Services (ISS) have a long history at Georgian College, growing steadily since the early 1990s. Graduates from the college’s three Indigenous-focused academic programs are the next generation of Indigenous community leaders. Georgian has undertaken concerted efforts related to loss of Indigenous language and is producing language champions critical to cultural survival. An Indigenization strategy focused on the infusion of Indigenous curriculum, faculty training, Indigenous knowledge sharing and enhancements to physical and virtual space is also underway, with advancements in each of the seven principles in the CICan’s Indigenous Education Protocol. The road to Truth and Reconciliation is reflected in Georgian College’s Strategic and Academic Plans, moving the college forward in a good way.
Silver: Algonquin College
Bronze: NorQuest College
The Excellence in Global Engagement Award
Gold: Humber College
Humber has been a national leader in international education for many years through a deliberate, integrated, and nuanced approach to internationalization. This has resulted in an 11% increase in international student enrollment over 5 years. Humber’s 2018-2023 Internationalization Strategy was the first in Canada to articulate its internationalization goals using four specific pillars: Internationalization at Home; Bringing the World to Humber; Taking Humber to the World; and Globalization of the college’s Polytechnic Identity. The outcomes defined under each pillar celebrate and amplify the commitment expressed in Humber’s mission, which is “to develop global citizens with the knowledge and skills to lead and innovate”.
Silver: Niagara College
Bronze: Seneca College
The Excellence in Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Award
Gold: Sault College
Sault College offers a campus and workplace that respects, embraces, and values equity, diversity, and inclusion. As a core value at Sault College, the college’s diversity statement includes guiding principles that recognize the richness diverse staff and students provide. Sault College’s continued pursuit of ensuring equity, diversity, and inclusion is integrated throughout the college’s processes, operations, and services, and is strengthened in its new strategic plan, which is called Maamwiziwin, meaning togetherness. Sault College is committed to the pursuit of a renewed relationship with First Nations, Métis, and Inuit peoples and will move forward in a spirit of trust, collaboration, and reconciliation.
Silver: Algonquin College
Bronze: Red River College Polytechnic
The Excellence in Sustainable Development Award
Gold: Centennial College
The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide Centennial College with a roadmap to hone and recommit its resolve to work for social and environmental good. This nomination displays the ways Centennial has driven SDG innovation across the institution, embedding them in the college’s curriculum, applied research and entrepreneurship initiatives, infrastructure and operations, and strategic plan. Operating during the “Decade of Action” for the SDGs, Centennial is eager to strengthen its sustainability mandate and identify areas where it can grow, evolve, and leverage our opportunities and partnerships. The college is proud of the work it has been undertaking as a community to drive sustainability into the culture at Centennial College.
Silver: Dawson College
Bronze: Seneca College
The Program Excellence Award
Gold: NorQuest College for the Interdisciplinary Therapy Assistant Diploma program
In 2019, NorQuest College’s Physical Therapy Assistant Diploma program evolved into the new Interdisciplinary Therapy Assistant (ITA) program. Driven by expressed needs of industry stakeholders to provide integrated, client-centred, and cost-effective care, the ITA program uniquely prepares graduates to assist with physical, occupational, recreational, and speech-language therapy. In 2021, the program was recognized with a six-year accreditation award, demonstrating the high-quality effectiveness of both engaging on-campus and highly interactive online delivery. The program’s strength is in its dedicated team, as well as exceptional partnerships with interdisciplinary stakeholders across the province.
Silver: Fanshawe College for the Fashion Design program
Bronze: Lambton College for the Aamjiwnaang PSW program
The Leadership Excellence Award for Managerial Staff
Gold: Trina Radcliffe, Olds College
A community-minded leader, Trina Radcliffe, Manager, Athletics, has created a welcoming and inclusive culture centered around teamwork, respect, and trust. She has led the Olds College Broncos to multiple championships, but more importantly has created an athletics program that challenges students to not only be great athletes, but to be generous, community-minded team players who positively contribute to society. Volunteering on several community committees herself, the Broncos student athletes under Trina’s leadership contributed 3,700 hours actively participating in the community last year alone. Trina has also been instrumental in establishing the Olds College Gay Straight Alliance, and the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee.
Silver: Dario Guescini, George Brown College
Bronze: Tamara Chambers-Richards, College of New Caledonia
The Leadership Excellence Award for Non-Managerial Staff
Gold: Miki Speirs, Camosun College
The Camosun Cares initiative was started and managed by Miki Speirs a new support staff at Camosun College. The Camosun Cares program supported several hundred students, during the most challenging period of the pandemic, and has led to an on-going food security program that continues to support hundreds of students. Camosun Cares involved the entire community, with members of the community providing financial and food donations in the hundred-thousand-dollar-plus range. It also gave the community the opportunity to volunteer with hundreds of volunteers coming together to help put hampers together for students and then volunteer drivers delivering and checking on the recipients of the hampers. An amazing community builder.
Silver: Michèle Martin, Cégep de Chicoutimi
Bronze: Dawn Sugimoto, Lethbridge College
The Leadership Excellence Award for Faculty
Gold: Karen Klee, Fanshawe College
Karen Klee, professor and coordinator of Fanshawe’s Developmental Services Worker program, is an enthusiastic and innovative educator demonstrating a strong commitment to student success. Karen worked as a nurse consultant in the developmental services sector for 20 years before joining Fanshawe full time in 2013. Karen has been an early adopter of eLearning tools and strategies that promote universal design and improve student outcomes. Karen encourages others and shares her experiences through college-wide professional development opportunities. Outside the classroom, she chairs a provincial committee focused on recruitment and retention of skilled support workers in the field of developmental services.
Silver: Clara Bergen, NorQuest College
Bronze: the Creativity and Creative Problem-Solving Faculty Team, Sheridan College
The Leadership Excellence Award for Students
Gold: Gurjashan Singh Dhummi, Columbia College
Gurjashan Singh Dhummi, a graduating student at Columbia College Vancouver, is recognized equally as a leader of students and a leader in fostering relationships with college bodies. He is tireless in pursuing a more just, inclusive, and student-centred college. He has worked on OER adoption, Indigenization, LGBTQIA+ solidarity, student representation, and accountability. An exceptional student with a 3.9 GPA, he earned a work placement as the social media manager for a local non-profit, Friends of Granville Island. In this capacity he works towards decolonizing their work and enhancing participation in a unique local amenity. Columbia College could not be prouder of this 19-year-old leader, from whom the whole college community has learned and benefited.
Silver: Kelsey Knipple, Saskatchewan Polytechnic
Bronze: Anabelle Hébert, Collège communautaire du Nouveau-Brunswick
About Colleges and Institutes Canada:
CICan is the national and international voice of Canada’s largest post-secondary education network. It advocates, builds capacity, and drives knowledge to strengthen Canada’s publicly supported colleges, institutes, CEGEPs, and polytechnics. With more than 95% of Canadians living within 50 km of a member institution, and thanks to its extensive reach around the globe, CICan works to future-proof communities in Canada and abroad.
We respectfully acknowledge that CICan’s offices in Ottawa are located on the traditional and unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabe Nation.
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For more information:
Julien Abord-Babin
Senior Strategic Communications Officer
Colleges and Institutes Canada
Email: jabord-babin@collegesinstitutes.ca
Phone: 613-746-2222 ext. 3131
Twitter: @CollegeCan